Concrete fence



H. M. POLAND July 23, 1968 CONCR ETE FENCE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 28, 1966 TIE-L TII:=--

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INVENTORZ. HAROLD M. POLAND W ATTORNEY July 23, 1968 H. M. POLAND 3,393,896

CONCRETE FENCE Filed Jan. 28, 1966 I3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIE- IEI INVENTOR. HAROL-D M- POLAND ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,393,896 CONCRETE FENCE Harold M. Poland, 966 Butte St., Claremont, Calif. 91711 Filed Jan. 28, 1966, Ser. No. 523,690 1 Claim. (Cl. 256-19) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLQSURE A concrete fence structure composed of upright cylindrically curved fence sections disposed side by side with their lower ends embedded in a concrete footing and separated from the footing proper by an intervening layer of relatively resilient asphaltic material, and the top rail joining the upper ends of the sections, whereby each section is adapted to yield laterally under load to effect transfer of a portion of the load to the remaining sections through the top rail to prevent fracture of the loaded section.

The present invention relates generally to structural members; more particularly, the invention relates to structural members of improved characteristics suitable for fencing and similar structural usage.

Prior art It has become a practice in home construction and other building activity to enclose the structure or at any rate to separate the structure from other adjacent structures or adjacent land. Such separation has been accomplished in the past by wooden fencing which decays and needs maintenance. Other structures have included building block fences which do not decay but are either ugly in appearance or expensive to construct. Further prior art means include wire mesh fences which are both unattractive and in some residential areas are prohibited by building codes.

Summary of the invention The present invention contemplates novel structural members and techniques for the fabrication and assembly of such members in fences and similar structural separation constructions.

The new structures according to the invention are formed so as to comprise a section of a cylinder standing vertically. Numbers of the structural elements according to the invention can be assembled into rows or arrays to provide attractive designs in addition to serving the purpose of fencing, for which they were conceived.

The footing on which the vertical structural elements are supported, according to the invention, incorporates relatively resilient means by which the characteristic expansion and contraction of structural members such as employed herein are taken into account. Expansion joint materials are typically such as used in constructing concrete highways, bridges and buildings. These are made of fibrous material impregnated with asphalt. This reduces the danger of fracture of the members by exposing them to excessive strains or stresses resulting from changes in the environment.

In the construction of the invention arcuate individual concrete slabs of stiffer and lighter construction are assembled together in a manner which gives better lateral loading safety than has been possible heretofore. The slabs are supported in a resilient asphaltic expansion embedment in a concrete footing.

In a fence structure the row or array of structural units is capped by a top rail to which the elements are fastened.

The combination -of capping means and the resilient embedment engaging a row of slabs according to the invention absorb transverse loading by transmitting shocks to ice the structure through the capping means (top rail), each unit taking the load in turn to dissipate it safely. This overcomes the usual tendency of concrete slabs to fracture under shock excited strains. Each of the elements is basically a slab of arcuate construction which may be fabricated by a centrifugal cement forming apparatus of a type generally used in the prior art for fabricating relatively thin-walled cement tubing or pipe. This method produces stronger concrete than any other method and cannot be used for flat slabs, only on curved slabs, such as are used in the present invention. A novel adaptation of this device by which predetermined angular portions of the cylindrical pipe may be prepared in a uniform division of the cylindrical whole, each portion substending the are over said angular portion and there being as many such arcuate sections as the predetermined angle may be divided into 360. The width of each such arcuate slab will then be equal to the length of the chord of the angle subtended by the are.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a new structural unit particularly adaptable to fence constructions.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel arcuate slab construction element of arcuate cross-section and relatively thin-wall and substantially longer than it is wide.

It is an object of this invention to provide a novel and attractive fence construction element particularly adaptable for household yard fencing.

An object of this invention is to provide structural elements in a fence construction capable of considerable structural rigidity and stiffness though relatively light in weight, lighter than concrete block but heavier than wood.

It is an object of the invention to provide a structural assembly such as a fence wherein rows of arcuate elements may be arrayed in upright side-side-by assembly in a variety of combinations in a resilient footing and capped by a common topping means to produce attractive designs in said fence structure utilizing a plurality of units of the same basic element in the fence construction.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those versed in the art from a consideration of the following description, the appended claim and the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a partially broken away view in perspective of a fence construction according to the invention showing certain details and alternatives of the construction thereof;

FIGURE 2 is a cross-section longitudinally through 2-2 of a structural element, one of the units of the fence shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a fragment of a capping element for a fence construction as shown in FIGURE 1 and viewed from the top thereof;

FIGURE 4 is a front elevational view of one of the arcuate structural elements of the fence construction of FIGURE 1 showing partly in a lateral cross-section therethrough a footing construction in which the element is embedded;

FIGURE 5 is a top end plan view of one of the arcuate structural elements according to the invention;

FIGURE 6 is a detail of a section of a fence construction according to the invention showing a supporting post unit for the capping sections, and the embedment thereof;

FIGURE 7 is a top plan view of the construction shown in FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary top view of a structure according to the invention showing in phantom therethrough another assembly relationship of the structural units thereof to form a particular structural design different from that shown in FIGURES 6 and 7;

FIGURE 9 is a view similar to that in FIGURE 8 showing another assembly array of structural elements according to the invention;

FIGURE 10 is a view similar to that in FIGURE 8 showing still another embodiment of the invention to provide another structural design;

FIGURE 11 is a detail of the top of a wall element; and

FIGURE 12 is a cross-sectional detail showing attachment means alternatively used.

It may be observed from an examination of the figures generally that the basic structural element of this invention may be employed in a number of configurations so as to produce fence or wall structures of attractive and decorative design in addition to their utility as fencing or wall structures. By the use of the design embodiments illustrated or any number of others which may occur to those skilled in the structural arts related hereto, a variety of fence designs may be achieved as a continuum of the same form or, by varying the forms in predetermined patterns or arrays a variety of novel design creations may be achieved.

In the perspective view of FIGURE 1 one of the design configurations embodying the elemental units 10 of the invention in a fence 12 is shown. Fence 12 is topped by a capping structure or top rail 14 as shown partially cut away at 13 to expose the manner of assembly of capping structure 14 to the fence element 10. The capping structure 14 is shown in two sections 14a and 14b in FIGURE 1 to illustrate two representative forms of attachment to the fence 12. The attachment means are illustrated in FIGURES 11 and 12. Elements 10 are embedded in a footing base 15 partially cut away at 16 to show the structural relation thereto of the elements 10 and reinforcing bars 17 for which notches 19 are provided in the bottom side edges of element 10.

As may be seen in FIGURE 2 capping structure 14 is grooved as at 20 through the bottom center thereof to receive the structural element 10 interfittingly therein. Further in FIGURE 2 asphaltic fibrous resilient pad members 21 are provided in the sides of structural element 10 at the bottom thereof between the surfaces of the struc tural unit 10 and the cementitious footing 15 into which the element 10 is embedded.

The con-figuration of a structural unit 10 viewed from the top is shown in FIGURE 5 to be an arcuate portion of a cylinder, which, as is clear from FIGURES 1 and 4, form elongated sections of tubing sectioned vertically. When such arcuate sections are arrayed sideby-side, as indicated in FIGURES 1 and 3 there is formed a fluted array of an attractive configuration which when viewed from one side as indicated by arrow 22 appears to have convex flutes and form the opposite view as indicated by arrow 23 appears to have concave flutes. While the structure 10 is preferably of cement other materials may form the substance thereof such as gypsum wallboard, pressed wood or any of the variety of fiber materials now on the market.

For example, sections of a wall or fence 26, 27 as is seen in FIGURE 6 may be separated by a post 26 embedded in a deeper foot section 30. Section may be concave and section 27 may be convex. The wall of any length could consist of alternate sections such as 25, 27 following one another. This is more clearly illustrated in FIGURE 7.

In FIGURE 8 individual structural elements 10 may be seen to have been arrayed with a separation 33 between them and adjacent edges 31, 32 though separated, overlapping one another so as to provide complete opacity with freedom of passage of air currents through the separations 33. Capping structure 14- may be grooved to accommodate this arrangement of units 10, or may be attached by other means.

In FIGURE 11 the top 41 of a structural unit 10 is shown in a form for attachment of a capping element such as 14b, wherein threaded inserts 40 are embedded in the top 41 of unit 10 to receive bolts 42 as shown in cross-section in FIGURE 12.

The arrangement of the flutes 10 alternately bowing in 35 and out 36 as shown in FIGURE 9, provides a serpentine fencing or wall structure when the alternate units 10/36, 10/35 are abutted one against the other to form a continuum. Capping member 14 for this structure will require a wider groove such as 2.) (FIGURE 1). As above discussed the attachment may also be by other means.

If the separate structural elements such as 10 are arrayed as shown in FIGURE 10 a structure is provided wherein alternate sections 10 are bowed in as at 37 and out as at 39 and adjacent edges 40-41 separated so as to provide air flow with opacity and another design configuration from those of the other figures. The capping member 14 will require grooves 20 of appropriate shape to accommodate and interfit with the elements 10 in the configuration of FIGURE 10*. As above discussed the attachment may be by other means.

By the use of the invention as described above a variety of concrete section fence configurations are possible providing great utility, and attractive design while being permanent, once assembled. The structural elements are economical and provide a wide range of design combinations for the architect or home builder alike.

As has been detailed above, structural units 10 may be assembled in a variety of configurations of spaced or abutting arrays thereof as shown in the figures.

It will be clear to those skilled in the arts pertaining hereto that lateral shock, a condition in the past usually resulting in fracture of their cementitious forms, will not result in similar damage in array according to the invention because a strain due to shock will be absorbed first by the resilient asphaltic padding 21 and the loading effect thereof shared by the adjacent members such as 10 by transmission thereto through the capping rail structure 10. Thus the loading due to shock instead of being taken by a single member as would have been the case in a prior art element, in the present invention is distributed throughout the entire structure giving greater safety and longevity. The combination of the top rail 14 engaging the plurality of individual slabs such as 10 in any of the configurations above described and the embedment of the slabs in resilient pads 21 in a concrete footing such as 15 provides for absorption of the transverse loading in such manner that no damage can occur to the lower part of arcuate slab 10 at the footing joint 10-21-15 or similar joints due to the taking up of the strain by the resilient pads 21 and as above described, the transmission through rail 14 to adjacent elements of the structure.

Those versed in the art will appreciate that the present invention achieves the objects and realizes the advantages hereinbefore mentioned.

Although specific embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described herein, it will be understood that the same are merely exemplary of presently preferred embodiments capable of attaining the objects and advantages hereinbefore mentioned, and that the invention is not limited thereto; variations will be readily apparent to those versed in the art, and the invention is entitled to the broadest interpretation within the terms of the appended claim.

The inventor claims:

1. In a concrete fence the combination of: arcuate concrete sections of an elongated cylinder of relatively thin cross-section compared to the chord of said arcuate sections; said arcuate sections being arrayed side by side on the longest dimensions hereof; a footing structure; said arcuate sections being embedded in said footing structure, the arcuate surfaces thereof being resiliently separated from the embodiment in said footing structure by an asphaltic fibrous substance therebetween; and a capping structure on top of said array of arcuate sections,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Hahn 52208 Morgan et a1. 52-S73 X Naillon et al 52-573 X Busing 256-19 Hickok 4977 Townsend 25619 Kannel 4977 X 10/ 1953 Lindman 25622 2/1959 Blum 25631 3/1959 Brodersen 25619 6/1963 Boxberger 25622 6/1964 Case 25624 2/1965 Palfey 52309 X FOREIGN PATENTS 6/ 1934 Great Britain. 7/1947 Great Britain. 7/1899 Germany.

DAVID J. WILLIAMOWSKY, Primary Examiner.

DENNIS L. TAYLOR. Assistant Examiner. 

